ETOWAH, Tenn. – Etowah’s friendliness and scenic beauty often draw people to the area, and food helps to bring them back.
“We have people who come here just to eat,” said interim city manager John Solsbee. “That’s one of the main reasons our restaurants have done so well. We get people from Athens and Cleveland (Tenn.), then we get others from Chattanooga and all around the Southeast who come on tour buses or trains when the rail excursions are running.”
Chamber of Commerce director Durant Tullock said one reason for the restaurants’ popularity is the fact that they are all locally owned. There’s south-of-the-border fare, mom-and-pop places, meat-and-threes and gourmet food, too. A stop at the local ice cream parlor is a must for warm-weather visitors.
“Most chain stores all have the same menus,” Mr. Tullock said. “At our restaurants, you’ll find something different at each one.”
FARMHOUSE FAMILY RESTAURANT
Owners Diane and Bill White opened Farmhouse Family Restaurant 14 years ago. It was a former antiques shop with a barn design. They liked it, so they fashioned their restaurant after the country blueprint, keeping the old barn doors.
“If it didn’t work, we knew we could make it into a duplex or something,” Mrs. White said.
But it worked from day one, she said, even though it’s not the easiest restaurant to find. It’s a block or so off the main street in a residential neighborhood.
“People just find their way,” she said, some coming from as far as Nashville to get the made-from-scratch home-style food. There’s also a good selection of sandwiches, salads and entree platters.
And that’s not all.
“You’re gonna get a hug here, and they’ll ask you about your family,” Mr. Tullock said of regular customers.
Specialties: Daily specials such as homemade pickled beets, Farmhouse corn, turkey and dressing, chicken and dumplings, and beans. “We sell enough pinto beans to blow up Etowah,” Mrs. White said.
MEMORIES
For the past 35 years, people have been making memories at Memories on the main drag through Etowah. After Johnny and Jan Hawn bought the eatery 11 years ago, Mrs. Hawn said customers began telling her stories of first dates and other memorable meals enjoyed there.
They’re still making memories, enjoying Thursday nights all-you-can eat catfish fry and other made-from-scratch favorites. The chicken salad is special, “and some people say our Key lime pie is the best they’ve had anywhere in the South,” Mrs. Hawn said.
Like most restaurants in the city, Memories is a family affair with the Hawns’ son Seth as the chef. “And my mother-in-law makes the chicken salad,” Mrs. Hawn said.
“If you come here once, you’re gonna come again. New people come in every day,” Mr. Tullock said.
The atmosphere is casual, with booths, tables and a counter in the front dining area. There’s a large room to one side where groups can meet. A smaller private tea room is available for intimate gatherings.
Specialties: Hand-cut steaks, fresh vegetables, chicken salad, hand-breaded chicken tenders, Buffalo burgers, sweet potato chips, Thursday fish fry with homemade hush puppies and coleslaw.
MICHAEL’S
Presentation and flavor combine nicely at Michael’s, Etowah’s gourmet-level restaurant in an updated shopping center. The look is clean and contemporary, with hunter green walls and bright white trim. Seating is mostly in the front dining area, with a separate dining room for private functions and overflow.
“We don’t like to do it like other people,” owner Gus Jaibat said of the offerings found here.
Barbecue is started with fresh, never frozen, meats, and seasoning alone can take up to 15 minutes.
“A lot of love goes on it before it even goes on the grill,” Mr. Jaibat said.
Then it’s put in a smoker for 18 to 24 hours, carefully tended during the process, resulting in meat that’s extremely flavorful and fork-tender. A sampler platter with paper-thin brisket, St. Louis ribs, a 6-ounce sirloin and breast of chicken offers the complete experience. It comes with the house-made barbecue sauce, also sold by the quart.
“We’ve had people from Texas come here and tell us it’s the best barbecue they’ve ever had,” Mr. Jaibat said.
Specialties: Greek salad (an amazing tower of a salad), Very Berry salad, shrimp scampi, Coconut Planks (chicken tenders with pina colada or marmalade dipping sauce), barbecue prime rib.
TALK OF THE TOWN
On a warm summer’s day, the local ice cream parlor is crowded with folks cooling off with a hand-dipped ice cream, homemade sundaes or spectacular banana splits. But there’s more to Talk of the Town than ice cream. Starting at 7:30 a.m. Monday through Saturday, made-from-scratch breakfasts begin. Around 11 a.m., the grill fires up for burgers and sandwiches.
“People say we have the best fries in town. It’s something about the way we cook them – they’re crispy but not oily at all,” said owner Ann Simms, who opened the restaurant a decade ago.
The decor is reminiscent of the glory days of ice cream parlors of the 1950s. Giant hand-painted murals and a jukebox add to the inviting atmosphere, where customers can finish off a great burger with a scoop of Mayfield’s ice cream in a waffle cone.
Specialties: Homemade soup in a bread bowl, chili dog, Cuban sandwich, black Angus burger, Reuben and a brownie sundae.